Public assistance of police during criminal investigations: Russian experience

This study examines the high levels of public unwillingness to assist police in criminal investigations in Russia. Variables of public trust of police, fear of crime, victimization, and prior contact with police are used to explain this phenomenon. Also included in the study are variables of police fear and avoidance of police. The findings suggest that higher levels of distrust in, as well as fear and avoidance of police are strong predictors of citizens’ unwillingness to assist police in Russia. The paper discusses potential implications of these findings for the 2011 police reform in Russia.     

制度变迁理论视角下的公安教育改革

公安教育改革是公安教育为适应新时期公安工作特点而进行的体制变革,其目标是提高公安教育有效供给。制度变迁理论是新制度经济学的核心理论,通过此理论可以从动力因素、主体选择、变迁路径等角度审视公安教育改革的进程,论证公安教育改革的内在机理。     

论遏制我国特殊利益集团的制度建设

在我国经济体制转变过程中,制度冲突、制度缺失和制度执行失范等现象普遍存在,为特殊利益集团的衍生提供了可乘之机。特殊利益集团掠夺和侵害社会公共利益,引发社会利益结构的失衡,激化社会矛盾,而社会矛盾的本质和根源是制度矛盾。因此,必须通过加强制度创新建设来有效遏制特殊利益集团。     

China in Pacific Regional Politics

Abstract

Foreign aid from China to the island countries of the Pacific has grown rapidly over the last few decades and an expanding body of literature has examined various aspects of what this means for politics in the region generally. This article focuses on China’s impact on Pacific regional politics partly from the perspective of identity politics. It suggests that China has substantially increased its engagement with the Pacific island states by making use of its own identity as a South–South development partner in contrast to traditional (mainly Western) donors in the region. Unlike most traditional donors, however, China’s diplomacy and engagement are based largely on bilateralism, and this is likely to continue for the foreseeable future. This approach could continue to limit its impact on Pacific regionalism, regardless of how it projects its image.     

Economic,trade and development relations between South Africa and the European Union: The end of a strategic partnership? A South African perspective

ABSTRACT

The relationship between democratic South Africa and the European Union (EU) has been in existence for over 20 years, with its roots tracing back to anti-apartheid support measures. In its earlier form, it was anchored in the Reconstruction and Development Programme. Currently, it is guided by the National Development Plan of the National Planning Commission. This relationship has been tested over time, especially as a result of negotiations over the Economic Partnership Agreement with the EU. In the meantime, the euphoria that marked new South Africa's participation in the global system, with trade and development cooperation with the EU as one of the cornerstones, has waned considerably. The cancellation of several bilateral investment treaties with EU member states has further strained the relationship. While there are notable successes in the EU–South Africa Strategic Partnership, these may not be reflective of the actual strategic value of the partnership in the context of global shifts and the rising influence of emerging powers with which South Africa is integrating.     

Reforming sacred institutions: the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and the Roman Catholic Church compared

The Communist Party of the Soviet Union and the Roman Catholic Church (RCC) are both conceptualized as sacred institutions, with many features of ideology/theology, hierocratic structure, and policy process in common. After periods of exclusion, they both also faced strong pressures to adapt to changes in the modern world, both internal and external, and to reduce status differentiation within the hierarchy and between the clergy/apparatchiki hierarchy and the laity/population. The present article compares and contrasts de-Stalinization under Khrushchev (1956–1964) with the results of Vatican II (1959–1965), and Gorbachev’s reforms (1985–1991) with the efforts of Pope Francis to reform the RCC (2013–present). The comparisons validate the explanatory power of the noted similarities between these sacred institutions, while also highlighting significant differences in structure, mission, and process, which explain why Pope Francis has adopted an incremental strategy for reform of the RCC, in contrast to Gorbachev’s revolutionary strategy for reforming the CPSU.     

我国民主政治发展的路径依赖及路向选择——基于路径依赖理论的分析视角

从路径依赖理论的视角来考察,我国民主政治的发展在取得诸多成就的同时,也存在着思想观念、民主制度体系、民主组织行为等方面的非良性路径依赖,阻碍了我国民主政治的发展。加快我国民主政治发展必须打破非良性的路径依赖,实现路径替代,需要在更新民主观念、深化市场经济体制改革、推进政治体制改革、以及扩大公民有序政治参与等方面做出努力。     

社会正义与制度建设

正义是社会制度的首要价值。然而,中国当代的正义存在一些缺损问题,即正义取向出现了偏差,形式正义与实质正义、算术正义与比例正义、交换正义与分配正义等正义形式出现了缺损。本文提出通过加强制度建设来改善正义缺损问题的现状,因为制度最基本、最重要的功能就是保障社会的公平正义。     

Understanding the changing role of public sector performance measurement in less developed countries

This article develops a framework for understanding changes in the demand for and supply of performance information in public sector organizations in less developed countries (LDCs). New Institutional Sociology (NIS) is used to argue that pressures from specific stakeholders stimulate organizations to produce particular performance information. The article distinguishes three groups of stakeholders (i.e. funding bodies, statutory boards and purchasers), and elaborates on the performance dimensions these stakeholders are interested in. The group of funding bodies, with their interest in financial performance information, used to be the most important group of stakeholders. However, statutory boards and purchasers are gaining importance as a result of recent public sector reforms, which include decentralization, marketization and the implementation of anti‐corruption programs. As a consequence of pressures coming from these stakeholders, new performance dimensions, such as the quality and quantity of services and the political governance structure, will be added to organizations' performance measurement (PM) systems. Whether these and other—often more traditional financial—performance dimensions will be balanced and integrated throughout organizations depends on the power positions of the various stakeholders. The arguments presented in this article intend to stimulate public sector organizations in LDCs to design and redesign PM systems as a response to changing stakeholder interests. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Do FDI patterns differ between manufacturing and service sector in CEE countries

In the paper, we presented results of the research, realized with the goal to test main determinants influencing on FDI stock in manufacturing and services in transitional countries, precisely CEE countries. Some of the conceptual issues identified under possible differences of FDI determinants in manufacturing and services we started with were： （1） What are the most important determinants of FDI in manufacturing and services？ （2） Are there significant differences between the main influencing determinants/factors between manufacturing and services？ （3） Are there significant differences between FDI determinants for developing countries/transitional countries and industrial countries？ （4） What are the implications for policies and strategies to attract FDI in different industries for developing countries？ Dependent variable used in this paper is the FDI stock p/c （NACE 1-digit） into manufacturing and service sector for each observed CEE country, in the period 1999-2006. In case of our sample countries, a set of possible FDI determinants was selected from the pool of traditional and institutional-related determinants in the literature, and relevant indicators available. Empirical analysis was conducted by the regression assessment of panel data, using the set of data for CEE countries, studied over eight years. We estimated fixed effects model and OLS with panel-corrected standard errors （PCSEs） using Prais-Winsten to take into account the AR（1） process. Two out of four traditional variables showed differences between the manufacturing and service sector： （a） Inflation, as the indicator of macroeconomic instability, was not statistically significant for manufacturing sector but it was significant for service sector; （b） wages had statistically significant influences on the FDI in manufacturing sector, but had no influence on service sector. Looking at the results of testing indicators we had found significant differences between all indicators： （a） Privatization influenced on FDI attractions in manufacturing sector and it was significant for service sector, with negative influence; （b） wages had statistically significant influences on the FDI in manufacturing sector, but had no influence on service sector; and finally （c） other two traditional variables-market size indicated through GDP p/c and openness of economy had the same results for both, manufacturing and service sector.